Has anyone on here gotten any work from the site Droners.io?

RickMC · Aug 20, 2018

I signed up for this site and I've seen a few jobs pop up, only problem is, you have to bid on them and you're competing against a lot of other pilots. I saw a job pop up today for a simple shoot of a commercial property, and within an hour there had already been 10 bids placed on the job. It's looking like this site really won't be worth it in terms of getting commercial work if you are competing against 10 other people each time a job gets posted. I feel like my chances of getting selected from a group of 10 other pilots is slim to none. I guess that's the reality of the commercial drone business. Just wondering if anyone else on here has had experience with Droners?

BigAl07 · Aug 20, 2018

It's good "fill in" work if you can't do anything else but no company like this is going to allow you to make any REAL money.

WVDronePilot · Aug 25, 2018

Yes, I've done several jobs through that site. Most of the "budgets" are low and not worth messing with, some are average. I look at the job and submit a bid. Lots of times, they accept my bid and others you never hear back from. I am in central WV so there isn't much competition.

Good luck!

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Cleve

mdurbanek · Aug 26, 2018

I don't know about this particular site. But for several years I was actively bidding on photography jobs on Thumbtack. I have been successful on several occasions and have retained three clients over that time, national companies that need reliable remote vendors.

Unfortunately, the site has been flooded by fools and become a market-destroying cesspool. Apparenly the company somehow makes a better profit from fees generated by $150 jobs than $2K jobs. Incompatible with my Jurassic business model.

Russ Still · Aug 27, 2018

Take advantage of a free listing on DronePilotsCentral. This puts your name out there in front of potential new clients. It has very sophisticated search and allows website visitors to interact directly with you. No cost to you, no cost to them.

www.DronePilotsCentral.com

mdurbanek · Aug 27, 2018

Russ Still said:
Take advantage of a free listing on DronePilotsCentral. This puts your name out there in front of potential new clients. It has very sophisticated search and allows website visitors to interact directly with you. No cost to you, no cost to them.

www.DronePilotsCentral.com

I'll check it out, thanks!

KRProton · Sep 4, 2018

I've signed up with DroneBase and Droners.io. I'm disappointed in both. I'm in West Virginia which is not exactly the heart of the country so I don't expect much work, but I'm disappointed in the formats of their sites. I also signed up for roof inspection jobs with both and went through the lengthy process of taking their tests, performing practice missions and submitting images, etc., etc. But they keep changing their specifications and navigating their web sites is confusing. I've kind of given up, but need to get back to it.

Tim

FLYBOYJ · Sep 10, 2018

I've had a steady flow of work from Droners.io in my part of the world. They have been easy to work for and pay promptly. Much of the work I've been doing is close by my home or along my commute to the full time gig.

Sky Fish · Feb 25, 2021

RickMC said:
I signed up for this site and I've seen a few jobs pop up, only problem is, you have to bid on them and you're competing against a lot of other pilots. I saw a job pop up today for a simple shoot of a commercial property, and within an hour there had already been 10 bids placed on the job. It's looking like this site really won't be worth it in terms of getting commercial work if you are competing against 10 other people each time a job gets posted. I feel like my chances of getting selected from a group of 10 other pilots is slim to none. I guess that's the reality of the commercial drone business. Just wondering if anyone else on here has had experience with Droners?

Nothing so far, been w them almost 2 months, put in bids or apply to offers and never hear back from potential clients.

BigAl07 · Feb 25, 2021

Sky Fish said:
Nothing so far, been w them almost 2 months, put in bids or apply to offers and never hear back from potential clients.

WELCOME to the forum @Sky Fish

I've placed bids UNDER their budget and still get rejected. I'd say the vast majority of the other operators are working for Beer Money (pennies on the dollar) do there's no winning those.

You have to click on "Subscribe" to get notifications when you do NOT get the bid. It's under:

Account Settings
Subscription Settings and click the checkbox in front of "Subscribe to bid rejection notifications"

Florida Drone Supply · Feb 28, 2021

We have many customers and pilots that have done work for Droners.io

But, these are one-offs. As when you're working for these brokers you are wholesaling your business/skills. You're not making a reputation for yourself, you are just doing a job, and you can't expect to make a living off flying the wholesale market.

Mike D.

DVA · Mar 15, 2021

DroneBase works on high volume and low margins. That's why they don't pay their pilots nearly enough for what they do. They also know that there are plenty of weekend warriors out there willing to work for pennies

R.Perry · Mar 25, 2021

Let's talk real dollars here. From what I have seen from these types of companies there is no decent money to be had. As stated, somebody will always underbid you and work for nothing.
One lad I spoke with drove sixty miles one way to do a job for $50.00, now that is down right a waste of time in my opinion.
Those of you who are low balling these jobs are only hurting yourself and everyone else.
My two cents.

DVA · Mar 25, 2021

Really makes it tough for us who do this for a living.

spamgnome · Apr 29, 2021

I've done several jobs for posters on Droners.io. Everything people have said here is true. It just depends on what you want to get out of it.

Russ Still · May 1, 2021

DVA said:
Really makes it tough for us who do this for a living.

It's highly unlikely that you'll ever make a living of it if you rely on third party brokers to find work for you. The only way to be a success at this is to take charge, learn how to market yourself properly, and become the pro that people want to work with. Flying is the smallest part of running a successful drone business.

Scott555 · Jul 5, 2021

Perfect time for a 'first post'.

I think it's only a matter of time or adjustment before the commercial aspect of UAS is re-organized. Much like it would be for manned aircraft. At this point, we can be a person who never touched a drone before, study for a week or two, and all of a sudden BAM! We're a commercial pilot. Zero hours. Immediately shopping for open jobs. I think flight hours could play a big part in the industry moving forward. Perhaps a tier system for jobs, where insurance requires a certain tier pilot hours, etc. But being cautious not to make it too restrictive where only large companies with huge budgets, $20,000 birds and marketing departments can survive.